Josh Merrill – Field Manager
Josh Merrill will return as the Rockers Field Manager for the 2026 season after guiding the franchise to its second Northwoods League Championship in the past three seasons. Merrill currently serves as the Head Baseball Coach at Eastern Oklahoma State College.
Merrill is no stranger to the summer collegiate baseball scene and the Northwoods League. He joined the Rockers in 2025 after spending a summer leading the Johnstown Mill Rats in the Prospect League, where his team achieved a Northeast Division playoff appearance in his first year at the helm. Merrill has previous Northwoods League experience as a player, pitching for the rival Wausau Woodchucks during the 2012 season.
Before taking the reins at Eastern Oklahoma, Merrill spent three years as the head coach for the Northern Iowa Area Community College Trojans. During his years at the helm, his teams made appearances in the Region 11 tournament two years. During Merrill’s time at NIACC, Trojan baseball saw 16 players receive ICCAC All-Region Honors and one player named to the ABCA NJCAA Division II All-American team in 2023. Merrill has helped 32 players successfully transfer to four-year colleges during his time at NIACC and has simultaneously built an extensive network with other college coaches throughout the country.
Prior to his arrival in Mason City, Merrill was an assistant coach at the University of Southern Indiana for one season, where he oversaw recruiting and worked with the offense, catchers, and outfielders. He was also an assistant coach for two years at Neosho County Community College.
A native of Wichita, Kansas, Merrill was a right-handed pitcher who started his career at Neosho County Community college where he was a part of back-to-back trips to the NJCAA D1 World Series. After Neosho County, he transferred to the University of Arkansas-Little Rock and later King University. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice and a Master of Science in Healthcare Administration from Oklahoma State University. Merrill currently resides in Mason City with his wife and their four children.
Richie Villanueva – Pitching Coach
Richie Villanueva is a proven leader and developer of pitching talent with experience spanning high school, junior college, Division I baseball, and the collegiate summer league level. Known for building competitive cultures and maximizing player development, Villanueva has consistently helped programs achieve postseason success while advancing players to the next level.
Currently serving as Head Coach at Martinsville High School, Villanueva has guided the Pirates to back-to-back playoff appearances (2024–2026), establishing the program as a consistent postseason contender. His leadership emphasizes accountability, toughness, and player growth — both on and off the field.
During the summer of 2025, Villanueva worked in Player Development with the Johnstown Mill Rats, helping lead the club to a First Half Championship and securing the first home playoff game in franchise history. His experience in the summer league environment has strengthened his ability to manage diverse collegiate rosters, build chemistry quickly, and prepare players for high-level competition.
At the Division I level, Villanueva served as Assistant Coach and Pitching Coach at Stephen F. Austin State University (2022–2023), where he worked directly with the pitching staff on development, game planning, and competitive preparation.
Prior to SFA, Villanueva spent three seasons at Pratt Community College in the highly competitive Jayhawk Conference. As Pitching Coach and Recruiting Assistant, he coached three All-Conference pitchers, helped lead the program to a 2022 playoff appearance, and assisted 10 student-athletes in advancing to four-year programs. His recruiting eye and development model consistently turned high-upside arms into impact contributors.
Villanueva began his coaching career at Quitman ISD, serving as Pitching and Infield Coach from 2017–2019.
As a player, Villanueva competed at Riverland Community College on a nationally ranked team before continuing his academic career at Stephen F. Austin State University and Masters degree at Dallas Baptist University.
Married to his lovely wife Katie and has three children, Devlin 6, Rynlee 4, and Keegan 1 ½.
Griffin Smith – Bench Coach
Griffin Smith started his coaching career in 2021 as a student assistant at Central Baptist College, where he ran indoor track and played college baseball. Following his graduation in December of 2022, Smith accepted the recruiting coordinator position at Ecclesia College in Springdale, AR.
In 2024, at just 24 years old, Griffin Smith was promoted to Head Baseball Coach at Ecclesia College and immediately elevated the program to national prominence.
In his first season, he led the team to a 33–14 record, a Regular Season Conference Championship, a #11 national ranking, and produced 17 All-Conference and 4 All-Region players, and 4 Gold Glove Recipients. Smith also received the 2025 Conference Coach of the Year and Arkansas Natural State College Coach of the Year award.
The ‘25 team also set a program record in winning percentage while leading the nation in fielding percentage and ranking top five nationally in batting average (.328), triples, on-base percentage, and stolen bases, along with a top-10 national slugging percentage.
Currently 47–18 as a head coach, Ecclesia continues to play at an efficient rate, sitting at 14–4 this season while hitting .309 with 124 stolen bases so far.
Griff also has 6 years of Scouting experience with Prep Baseball- Arkansas.
Tyler Roper – Hitting/1B Coach
Tyler Roper is currently an assistant coach at Central Christian College of Kansas. He mans the offense and is the recruiting coordinator.
Roper was an assistant coach for a summer in the West Coast League. Coached under the winningest coach in Idaho high school baseball. Following that summer, he was also an assistant coach in the Perfect Collegiate Baseball League for three summers. In those three summers accumulated 25 plus wins and playoff appearances every year.
Before becoming an assistant coach at Central, he was an assistant coach at Lassen Community College. While he was there, he coached two Junior College All-Americans and the base-stealing champion in the California Community College Baseball Association. He was the unanimous Golden Valley Conference Player of the Year.
Prior to Lassen, Roper was a part of the Bryan College coaching staff that, in two years, went to two NAIA Opening Rounds. While he was at Bryan, he coached an NAIA All-American. His time at these places influenced him to maximize the skillsets of the players he coaches.
Roper is from Boise, Idaho. He was a catcher/infielder at Treasure Valley Community College. He was a part of two teams that made the North West Athletic Conference Tournament. After TVCC, he transferred to Westmont College and played in two NAIA Opening rounds. He graduated with a History degree and graduated with an MBA in Sports Management from Bryan College.